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Chubby-butted, expensive, and with what under the hood? Coming up with three reasons to dismiss the new V-6 version of the 2011 Porsche Panamera takes about the same number of seconds. But spend an hour with Porsche‘s big GT, and such a verdict starts to seem, well, a little hasty.

First, that notionally insufficient engine isn’t something borrowed from the Volkswagen Group, like the V-6s in Cayennes old and new. The Panamera’s new 295 horsepower 3.6-liter engine is Porsche’s first V-6 designed and manufactured in house. It’s basically three-quarters of the company’s all-aluminum, direct-injection 4.8-liter V-8 and uses the same 90-degree vee angle, which means both engines can be produced on the one manufacturing line.

“It was important for us to make both engines on the same machines,” says Christian Heiselbetz, drivetrain manager for the Panamera. Porsche builds only around 100,000 engines per year, he explains, and the expense of creating a new line just for the V-6 was out of the question.

While 40 percent of parts — including pistons and connecting rods — are shared by these two engines, there are some major differences beyond the obvious items like crankshaft, block, and cylinder heads. As 90 degrees isn’t an ideal angle for V-6 smoothness, the new engine features a chain-driven contra-rotating balance shaft in its sump to quell vibrations.

Although the 3.6-liter isn’t perfectly silky smooth at idle, it is vibe-free throughout the remainder of the rev range. With a redline at 6500 rpm, the V-6 is cultured at low to middling crank speeds, and delivers a notable increase in eagerness above 4000 rpm. Its sound, which Heiselbetz says took two years to tailor, is an engagingly hard-edged snarl.

Porsche’s performance claims, which feel credible from behind the wheel, show that the engine is as hard as it sounds. Teamed with the same seven-speed double-clutch automatic transmission as in Panamera V-8 models, the V-6 rear-drive Panamera records 0-62 mph in 6.3 seconds (half a second quicker than the six-speed manual version offered in Europe, by the way). The all-wheel-drive V-6 Panamera 4 is quicker again, and its 6.1 second 0-62 mph time can be reduced to 5.9 seconds with the addition of the Sports Chrono Package Plus, which includes Launch Control.

Naturally, the gas mileage of the V-6-engined Panameras is better than the equivalent V-8-engined Panamera S and 4S models. The V-6 shaves 2 to 3 mpg from EPA city and highway consumption. Porsche’s Auto Start Stop system is fitted as standard, although in U.S. specification the driver must press a button to activate it, which is the opposite of the way it works in other markets, including Europe.

The seven-speed double-clutch PDK automatic transmission works just as well with the V-6 as with the V-8. Push the throttle pedal through the distinct detent near the end of its travel, and it shuffles quickly through the deck of ratios to the best gear. It’s also brilliant at smoothly picking the right gear at light throttle openings.

Porsche has softened the Panamera’s chassis slightly compared with the V-8-engined models, pushing the ride and handling a little further toward the Turismo side of the GT equation. (The V-8 models will also adopt similar suspension settings from mid-June production, according to Porsche officials.) There’s no noticeable effect on the Panamera V-6’s prowess.

Although dauntingly wide, it remains a gratifyingly precise car to drive. The steering of the rear-drive Panamera is a little less meaty than the Panamera 4, but the latter’s additional weight feels to make little difference to agility. Ride? Without driving the S and S4 over the same roads, it’s hard to say for sure that V-6 is any better.

What is certain is that the Panamera’s interior, which is unchanged for the V-6 models, remains a very, very pleasant place to spend time. Driver or passenger, it doesn’t matter. Four luxurious seats, lovely materials, first-class assembly and interesting design. Not many interiors are this good, and the V-6 models deliver it at a bargain price in comparison to the $15,000-more-expensive V-8-powered S and 4S.

Factor the V-6 Panamera’s much better than adequate performance and superior fuel efficiency into the equation, and along with the cost savings relative to the existing lineup, it starts to look rather persuasive.

Among the three points of that first, hasty judgement, the wide, prominent behind is the only point left. Sure, this isn’t going to change until the second-generation Panamera (and maybe not even then). But there are some who actually like ’em built that way…

Horsepower

2011 Porsche Panamera News and Reviews

Few cars receive focused animosity like the Porsche Panamera. From the grave “It’s not a Porsche,” to the grade school, “It’s really ugly,” insults come from all angles, aimed squarely at its hunchback. You won’t find me among the critics, because to define this car by its styling is to mock Apollo 11 for having food that isn’t particularly good.…